Quick Ratio Calculator

The quick ratio asks whether a business can settle its short-term bills without having to sell its stock, and it answers by excluding inventory from the numerator.

CashCash and cash equivalents on the balance sheet.ReceivablesTrade receivables due from customers.InventoryExcluded from the quick ratio, included in the current ratio.PrepaymentsAlso excluded from the quick ratio, because the money is already spent.Current liabilitiesEverything due within twelve months.

Quick ratio

0.7667

Current ratio: 1.55
Quick assets: $230,000.00
Working capital: $165,000.00

Values update as you type. This calculator covers the single scenario its formula assumes — see Common Mistakes for what it leaves out.

The formula this calculator uses

quick ratio = (cash + receivables) / current liabilities

QR: Quick ratio, also called the acid test
QA: Quick assets: cash, receivables and near-cash items
CL: Current liabilities due within twelve months

How to check the result by hand

1
List the quick assets
Cash, equivalents and trade receivables, plus short-term marketable securities. Leave out inventory and prepayments, which is the whole point of the measure.
2
Exclude the stuck assets deliberately
Inventory converts too slowly to count in an emergency and prepayments are already spent. Both are current assets and neither is liquid.
3
Add the quick assets
Eighty five thousand of cash plus one hundred and forty five thousand of receivables is two hundred and thirty thousand of quick assets.
4
Divide by current liabilities
Two hundred and thirty thousand over three hundred thousand is zero point seven seven. Below one means the business relies on turning stock to pay short-term bills.
5
Compare with the current ratio
Adding inventory and prepayments gives a current ratio of one point five five. The gap shows how much of the current assets are not really liquid.

For worked examples, common mistakes and the limits of this formula, read the full How To Calculate Quick Ratio page.